Safe In Your Arms
by DramaticSheep
Summary: Shell Cottage from Hermione's point of view. Sequel to On Deaths Doorstep. Feedback appreciated :


This is a sequel to my other One-Shot: On Deaths Doorstep, written in Hermione's point of view, a missing moment from Deathly Hallows.

**Safe In Your Arms**

I'd never felt more content in my entire life, I was warm, loved, and happy. I had no idea where I was, but I found myself not particularly caring, I was safe here. Images of Ron flickered in front of me, and I smiled as I took in all of his features; His beautiful red shaggy hair, glistening in the sun, his dopey smile, I loved him, all of him. Images of my parents, smiling down at me, they were happy, I could tell. Never had I felt so at peace; what was this? Where was I? I couldn't help but wonder.

Was I in heaven? Surely... I wasn't dead? Weighing all of the options, I barely noticed as his figure appeared before me, I looked up into his bright blue eyes, his shadow towering over me.

"You have to come back." He said. I knew exactly what he meant, though a part of me never wanted to leave this place.

"But I don't want to!" I complained, half out of selfishness, half out of the fear of not knowing what was waiting for me when I returned.

"Hermione, please - " He said, holding out his hands out to me. "For me?"

I paused for a moment and looked at his outstretched hands; they were much bigger than mine, rough and worn from our quest which had been going on for so long. I warily held out my hand and he took it in his, he smiled at me and led the way.

Coughing, spluttering, shivering and cold. I inhaled as deeply as I could to allow lots of oxygen into my lungs. Something was weighing down heavily upon me. I wanted to know what it was, I couldn't move beneath it; its weight was lead, but my eyelids were just too heavy and I could barely open them.

My body ached all over, throbbing endlessly, but dull. Slowly I became aware of a new kind of pain; a searing burning heat across my throat, and all over my face, legs and stomach.

Suddenly, a pair of hands grabbed me firmly, and pulled me out from underneath the monstrosity that was weighing down upon me. I moaned a little as I was dragged out, I could feel something cutting into my legs as I was moved. I looked up and opened my eyes as much as I could. I was lying in Ron's arms.

Relief washed over me, as he cradled my limp body in his arms. I tried calling out to him, but my throat was so dry that I could barely manage a sound.

"Ron - catch and GO!" I heard Harry shout from across the room, Ron gripped me tightly. The apparition tired me out even more, I had to fight with myself not to lose consciousness again, as we landed somewhere, far from the Manor.

The first thing that hit me about our new surroundings was the smell of salt that lingered in the air, there was a strong breeze and I shivered even more, as Ron lay me down on the floor.

"Oh God, 'Mione!" Ron exclaimed, as he rolled me over and untied my hands. I could hear him crying as he picked me up again, I wanted to wrap my arms around him, but I just couldn't muster the energy to do it, giving in, I lay there limp in his arms. My body ached with each step he took.

"Ron? What are you -" I heard someone say.

"Bill!" He cried. "Bill, please, you have to help her!"

I heard Bill gasp and run over to us.

"Oh my God, Hermione!" He said, his voice shaking.

"Bill?" I heard Fleur shout from far away. "Bill, what eez eet?" She called, her voice coming closer and closer.

"What 'az 'appened to 'er?" She gasped, but she didn't give Ron time to answer "Quickly, inside! I must heal her wounds."

I felt Ron running into the house, racing up the stairs, and holding onto my tightly so as I wouldn't fall out of his arms. He lay me down on what could only be a bed and then lost control beside me. His sobs came so fast, so loud, so heartbreaking.

"She...She's bleeding to death!" He shouted, then. "No... no no She can't die. Fleur, she can't die!" He pleaded.

"She won't!" Fleur shouted, shutting him up. "Go and get me ze Essence of Dittany. I will clean 'er wounds." I heard Ron walk away from me and leave the room. Fleur pulled out her wand and began to clean off all of the blood on my face, hands, legs and stomach. When she was done, she carefully lifted my eyelids and saw that I was conscious.

" 'Ermione, can you 'ear me?" She said, a small moan was all I could produce in response, but that was enough for her. I hear Ron run back into the room and back to my bedside.

"Is she okay?" He asked.

"She will be fine." Fleur said, pouring the Dittany onto my wounds. "She is conscious."

"Oh thank God, 'Mione." he said, taking my hand in his, I felt a little better as the Dittany worked on healing my wounds. My body still ached from the curse though.

"What 'appened, Ronald?" She asked him. Ron didn't answer for a while.

"I can't tell you that." He said. She let out a frustrated retort. "Please, Fleur! Will she be okay?"

"She will be fine." Fleur answered. "But I need 'er to drink this." She said. I felt Ron move in close to me and gently open my mouth. Then Fleur slowly poured the potion into my mouth, though it tasted disgusting, it took all of the little self control that I had left not to gag and spit it out.

"You need to swallow the potion Hermione." Ron said, holding my head. I couldn't answer him, but swallowed it down in one gulp. Immediately warmth began to spread all over my body, soothing the agonising aches that were still present. My throat felt moist now, instead of dry. Slowly I began to open my eyes.

Fleur and Ron were standing over me, Ron looked sick with relief. He reached down and pushed some hair off my face and smiled.

"Ron," I said quietly. He put his finger to his mouth, recommending that I stay quiet.

"Shh." He said. "You need your rest."

At that moment, Bill entered the room, he was out of breath as he shuffled across the room and took a hold of Ron's shoulders.

"Ron, what the hell happened?" He demanded.

"You know I can't tell you that." Ron replied.

"Ron, you must tell me! What happened to her?" He asked, looking in my direction, shocked to see that I was now awake, then he looked back at his little brother, who broke down once again.

"I - I can't. I just can't." He cried. Bill sighed and pulled his little brother into a hug.

"All right." He said, defeated. "You better pull yourself together, Harry is outside." Ron looked up at his brother.

"Is he alright?" I asked immediately. Both of them looked at me, and I shifted down on the bed, right, I was supposed to be resting.

"He's fine," Bill said. "But the house-elf isn't."

"Dobby?" Ron exclaimed. "What happened? He saved us! is he?"

"He's dead, Ron."

I stifled a cry behind my hand. I didn't know that Dobby had come to save us. How could Dobby be dead?

"Harry is outside, digging the grave." Bill said. "You should go to him." And with that, he turned to leave the room. Ron turned to look at me.

"I'm so glad you're okay." He said, walking over to me.

"What happened, Ron? How did Dobby do it?" I asked, I had to know.

"I don't know how, but he apparated into the cellar." Ron began. "He took Luna, Dean and Ollivander. Wormtail came down to check on us, and we ambushed him, took his wand. He was about to kill Harry… and then – then he killed himself."

"Killed himself?" I exclaimed. Peter Pettigrew did not seem the type to do such a thing.

"It was his metal hand, that..you-know-who had given to him." Ron explained. "It just turned on him. We got upstairs, I saw you lying on the floor, you were barely breathing 'Mione." He said, tears filling his eyes.

"And then, she was about to give you to _him_!" He said, I nodded, knowing he meant Greyback. "I couldn't let that happen, you see. I ran in, I disarmed Bellatrix, curses were flying everywhere, and the next thing I knew, she had you. She had a knife to your throat, she was going to kill you." He cried.

I cleared my throat in astonishment, now realising what the source of the pain on my throat was from.

"And then, all of a sudden, the chandelier fell. She threw you down and it fell on top of you and Griphook. I got you out though."

The chandelier made sense to me. It must have been shards of glass and crystal that had dug into my skin as I was being dragged out from beneath it, I looked up into his eyes, terror was still evident in his face. He was gripping onto his wand in his right hand, as though he expected disaster to strike at any moment.

"Thank you, Ron." I said.

"What for?" He asked shyly, his face already turning a little red.

"For saving my life." I said

"Oh.. right." He mumbled, looking away from me as he went more red. He wanted to tell me something.

_Tell me you love me._ I thought.

"Hermione, I – " He began, but was interrupted by Fleur, who came running into the room.

"Ron, you really must come now, Harry needs 'elp with ze grave." She said. Ron sighed a nodded.

"See you in a bit." He said to me, squeezing my hand, before he left the room, I sighed to myself as I watched him go.

_I love you_. I thought loudly, and could only hope that some way, some how, he could hear it.


End file.
